She spent the first part of her childhood in northern California and the latter in the Denver metro area. Her innate talents in art and music got her through her schooling, as they were the only subjects that kept her interested in school.

Throughout her life, she has always painted, cartooned or worked on various freelance projects, even while taking time out to raise her two children and run a nonprofit arts organization.

She moved to Los Angeles in her mid twenties to pursue a career in the arts. After earning an Associates of Arts degree in Art History, she looked into getting a Bachelor’s degree so she could become an elementary school art teacher, combining her two great loves: art and kids. She was shocked to find that there was no such position available in public schools at that time.

So she opened her own private art school for children. After her son entered kindergarten, Spike started volunteering in his classroom to teach art. One thing led to another and she found herself starting a nonprofit arts education organization, separate from the Los Angeles Unified School District, Arts in Education Aid Council.